


The Morning After

by ThoseWhoShowUp



Category: The West Wing
Genre: Episode: s07e16 Election Day Part I, Episode: s07e18 Requiem, Episode: s07e19 Transition, F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-11-12
Updated: 2012-11-12
Packaged: 2019-05-30 10:21:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,720
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15094706
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThoseWhoShowUp/pseuds/ThoseWhoShowUp
Summary: What if nobody else had been there when Donna went back to Josh's room the morning of the election. Continues with post-eps and missing scenes through Transition.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> A copy of this work was once archived at National Library, a part of the [ West Wing Fanfiction Central](https://fanlore.org/wiki/West_Wing_Fanfiction_Central), a West Wing fanfiction archive. More information about the Open Doors approved archive move can be found in the [announcement post](http://archiveofourown.org/admin_posts/8325).

Election Day – Part 1

Donna stood at the coffee dispenser in the lobby of the hotel. She shifted impatiently from one foot to the other. She couldn’t shake the look on Josh’s face, when he had stood in the doorway of the bathroom, from her mind. If she were honest with herself, she had been escaping. It was out of fear. Fear of her feelings for him. Fear of his feelings for her. Fear. She knew what her feelings were. She was in love with Josh and had been for years. His feelings were less clear to her. 

The sex had been good, better than good. It had been great, but then they had laid awkwardly next to each other not sure what to do or say until they gave in and rolled over to sleep on opposite sides of the bed. It had made Donna wonder if this all meant more to her than it did to Josh. Maybe her obvious invitation of sex was all that led to him following her. Maybe, to him, this was just casual sex, a campaign fling no more serious than Otto and Lou’s. 

It was that fear that had propelled her out of the bed fifteen minutes before and led to her dressing in the bathroom. She had told him she wasn’t leaving or sneaking out, but she wondered if he hadn’t followed her, if he had been asleep, would she have snuck out, left his room without saying anything. 

But he had followed her, and he had been… Josh. He hadn’t seemed like someone who had just had a one-night stand or was looking for casual sex. He had seemed nervous. What had he said… I didn’t want to make this awkward, and I just did? He’d asked her how she was feeling, and she brushed him off by making her answer about the election. He had been asking about them. If she hadn’t been so afraid, she wouldn’t be standing at a coffee dispenser in a hotel lobby wondering about what it all meant. 

“Damn it,” she muttered out loud as she overfilled one of the cups of coffee and it dripped down over her fingers. She grabbed a paper napkin and dried off her hand. Stacking the coffee cups so she could grip them with one hand, she pushed the call button for the elevator. The hotel was deserted, so she rode the elevator to the seventh floor alone. 

She kept picturing Josh’s face as he had tried to lean casually in the doorway of the bathroom, the look on his face as she caught him sucking toothpaste out of the tube. She should have kissed him then. That had been what she had wanted to do. What had stopped her? The moments before when they had been in bed together and couldn’t seem to work past the awkwardness, that had stopped her. 

What Donna couldn’t reason out was why that had been so awkward. This was what she thought about as she walked out of the elevator. The sex hadn’t been awkward at all. They had barely made it in the hotel room before they were removing each other's clothing. 

She smiled at the memory of Josh trying to get the keycard to open the door. She had taken it from him, as she had so many times before, and opened the door. She realized instantly that that was why the sex hadn’t been awkward. From the moment she had taken the key and he had looked at her with a bashful ‘I might be a brilliant political operative, but I still stumble over the most basic of tasks’ look, they had been in those oh so comfortable roles again. They were just Josh and Donna. 

She stared at the doorknob and smiled. His looks flashed through her mind again, when he stood in the bathroom doorway, when he hovered above her in bed hours before, when he followed her into the room after she’d opened the door. She knocked gently at the door to avoid anyone else from the campaign being made aware of movement in the hallway. She’d guess all any of them needed was a sign that other people were awake and work would begin again. 

Josh opened the door almost immediately. It was so quick in fact that Donna wondered if he had been standing by the door waiting since she left. “Hi,” he said with a nervous smile. 

“Here’s coffee,” she replied holding it out to him. 

“Thanks,” he took the coffee and looked at her with a determined look in his eye. Surprising Donna, he leaned forward and captured her lips with his in a gentle kiss. 

His action surprised her tremendously, but her own reaction was just as surprising. She felt her entire body warm and relax at the same time. When they broke apart after the brief moment, she felt the need to say something to lessen the tension. “If that is your reaction to being brought coffee, it is probably good I didn’t bring it to you more often at The White House.” 

Josh looked at her as if he were trying to read her. Something that she thought he didn’t need to work at anymore. “That had nothing to do with the coffee,” he replied seriously. 

“Nothing?” she replied with a smile.

He broke into a smile as well. “Well maybe a little, but if Otto brought me coffee he wouldn’t get that reaction. I’ll save it for you.” 

They both seemed to realize the serious statement hidden in Josh’s humorous comment at the same time. “Will you?” Donna asked. She tried to make it sound like a joke, but the retort came out seriously. 

Josh took a deep breath and decided it was time for a serious response as well. “I’d like to… if you’ll let me.” A smile tugged at the corner of Donna’s mouth but didn’t quite form. Josh continued. “If you’d let me, I’d like to do that everyday.” 

Donna felt a flutter in her heart. This was the conversation she had been nervously anticipating. Her fear seemed to be being abated. She smiled at Josh. “Just once a day?” she asked and took a sip of her coffee. 

“Would a hundred times a day be objectionable?” Josh asked with a grin. “Seriously though Donna, we should probably talk about this,” he added. 

She nodded, still nervous to have this conversation that could be oh-so-important. He sat down on the edge of the bed, and she sat next to him. “So…” she began. 

“Yeah,” Josh replied equally awkwardly. “Last night was…” He trailed off. 

“Was what?” she asked. A moment ago she was confident about this conversation. Now she had a deep fear he would finish with the words “a mistake”. 

“Amazing?” Josh asked his voice rising in pitch slightly. 

“Is that a question?” she asked. 

“I guess so,” he replied. “And a statement. I thought it was amazing, but I don’t know what you think.” He dropped his eyes to the bedspread between them. 

At that moment, Donna realized Josh was as nervous about her reaction as she was about his. Still, she couldn’t quite shake the hesitation. It was one thing to joke about it, but it was a whole other to be serious. “It was good sex,” she replied. 

Josh looked up at her searching her eyes. He took a deep breath and seemed to be making the decision to take a risk. “Sure, the sex was great,” he said. “But Donna, I meant more that being with you was amazing.” 

Donna smiled at him. “Really?” she asked. 

He nodded enthusiastically. “Really,” he replied. Somewhat cautiously, he reached out and took her hand that wasn’t holding her coffee cup. 

She found it hard to speak. Finally she said, “Me too, Josh.” He rewarded her admission with a full dimpled grin. She laughed. “Man, you’re cute,” she said impulsively. 

“Really?” he asked. “You think so?” 

“I’ve always thought so,” she confessed quietly. 

Josh grinned at her even more. “Want to know a secret?” he said quietly. She nodded. He leaned forward and whispered near her ear. “I’ve always thought you were incredibly beautiful.” He dropped his head slightly and kissed her neck just below her ear. 

“Josh,” she sighed as he released her hand and reached for her coffee cup. 

Barely moving away from her, he set their coffee cups on the nightstand. He turned back and stared into her eyes. “Should we see if we can top amazing?” he asked with a smile. 

Donna barely had a chance to laugh as Josh pulled her to him and planted a passionate kiss on her lips. 

**************************

Josh collapsed next to Donna on the bed again, and she worried that this time might be as awkward as the last. Then hesitantly, Josh reached out his hand toward her and slowly and cautiously placed it on her bare stomach. She smiled and rolled on her side to face him causing his hand to shift to just above her hip on her waist. “We’re pretty good at that,” she stated with a smile. 

“Better than good,” Josh agreed. “Donna, I…” He stopped and leaned forward and kissed her instead. 

She scooted closer to him and he slid his other arm under her and wrapped both arms tightly around her. As he began to trace lazy circles on her back with his hands, she purred and rested her hand on his chest. “It’s almost five,” Josh murmured. “We should get up. People will show up early for the meeting. I’d be surprised if anyone slept much tonight.” 

“Election day excitement,” Donna replied. They slowly got up to dress and just in time. No sooner had Donna dug her pantyhose out from under the bed and pulled them on then there was a knock on Josh’s door. Donna crossed to open it casually. 

“Oh you must not have been able to sleep either,” Ronna said with a smile. “We thought we could get to work now.” She added motioning to Otto standing beside her.


	2. The Morning After

Election Day- Part 2

Donna watched Josh as he stood looking at the board covered in pictures of the President-Elect and Leo. He whispered something to the board and sighed before turning around. “How long have you been there?” he asked her. 

“Not long,” she replied and crossed to him. “You did it,” she said so quietly it was barely above a whisper. 

“We did it,” he corrected. “It was a team effort.” 

“Modesty from Josh Lyman?” she joked. “I never thought I’d see the day.” She smiled at him. “Seriously though Josh, you found him. If it weren’t for you, he never would have run.” 

Josh nodded seriously. Then he looked at the floor. “Neither would Leo,” he stated. “And then maybe…” 

“Josh,” Donna cautioned. “Don’t do that.” She placed her hand on his upper arm. She gently ran her thumb back and forth against his shirt. “It is in no way your fault Josh.” 

“Yeah,” he agreed reluctantly. She knew he didn’t really believe it, but she accepted his replied. When he dropped his head, she ran her hand up to the back of his neck and pulled him into a hug. 

Josh sighed as he relaxed against her. “Thanks,” he whispered. 

Donna kissed his cheek near his ear and played with the hair at the base of his neck. “No problem,” she replied. “You should get downstairs.” 

“I’d rather be here… with you,” he stated. 

“I’ll go with you,” she replied moving away from him, but taking his hand in hers. He smiled at her and leaned forward and kissed her on the lips. Dropping her hand he moved his to her back, and they walked out of the room. 

The ballroom was a full on party by the time they got downstairs. The President-Elect had finished speaking, music was playing, and people were dancing. Josh looked at Donna, and she leaned over to him and whispered, “Leo would want you to enjoy tonight.” 

He laughed slightly and nodded. “Dance with me,” he stated with a smile. “Like we used to during the first Bartlet campaign.” 

“My pleasure,” she responded as he grabbed her hand and spun her away from him and then back to his chest. 

Otto wandered over to them. “What do we do now?” he asked. 

“Just enjoy yourself,” Josh said. “We won.” He dipped Donna causing her to laugh in surprise. “Go dance with Lou or something,” Josh said with a laugh. 

Otto got a slight look of fear on his face. “Don’t worry,” Donna said. “Everyone is in the mood to celebrate.” 

Otto nodded and wandered off. Josh and Donna danced for a few more songs. The President-Elect pulled Josh on stage while his wife stood next to Donna with a proud smile on her face. “Those guys did quite a job. I wasn’t sure I wanted this, but now it seems right,” Helen stated. 

Donna smiled back at her. “He’ll make a great president.” 

“That guy of yours isn’t such a slouch either,” Helen replied with a grin. 

“I’m sorry?” Donna asked attempting to play dumb. 

“My husband and most of the team might not have noticed what’s been happening between you and Josh, Donna, but I have,” Helen replied. “You should go make sure he is okay,” she added. “He looks pretty emotionally and physically beat.” 

“Uh, yeah, thank you ma’am,” Donna replied as Helen crossed to her husband. Josh was nearly immediately at Donna side. Helen was right; he did look worn out. “Do you want to go to bed?” Donna asked him. 

He nodded and allowed her to lead him upstairs. They rode the elevator to their floor in silence while people around them talked enthusiastically. They reached Josh’s door, and she wondered if she was supposed to say goodnight here and continue to her room or go in with him. She wanted to stay with Josh; she was sad and could use the comfort of being with him. She didn’t know, though, how he would feel about it. 

He solved her dilemma quickly though. As he fiddled with the room key a couple times, he threaded the fingers of his other hand through hers. Finally the green light appeared on the door, and Josh turned to her and smiled with accomplishment. She couldn’t help but laugh. This man had gotten bills passed through Congress with what seemed at times like sheer willpower, but he grinned proudly at opening a hotel room door. 

Opening the door, he led her into the room. While he did so, she asked, “Has anyone else caught on to your door opening issues?” 

“No,” he replied. “And don’t tell them; it might cause dissent among the ranks.” She laughed again, but stopped as she saw the look on his face as he sat down at the end of the bed. Sitting there he looked at her and said, “I really miss him already.” 

“Me too,” she replied. She sat down next to him. “We should get some sleep,” she stated. “It’ll be easier to deal with in the morning.” 

Josh nodded. “Will you stay anyway?” he asked. 

“Of course,” she replied assuming the anyway meant not having sex. “Can I borrow a shirt to sleep in or should I go down to my room…?” 

“You can borrow something,” he replied standing and crossing to his suitcase. He dug around for a moment. “Here,” he said finally tossing her a faded gray Harvard t-shirt. “It’s a comfortable one,” he added with a smile. 

Donna suddenly felt subconscious changing in front of him. “I’ll just go wash my face and…” she trailed off as she disappeared into the bathroom. She pulled off her clothing and pulled on his t-shirt over her bra and underwear. 

She was contemplating how to brush her teeth and even wondered if she should just go down the hall to do this stuff and then come back when Josh appeared over her shoulder. “Can I join you to brush my teeth?” he asked. She nodded and scooted aside. “I have an extra toothbrush,” he added. Digging in this bag he pulled a toothbrush still in the package out and handed it to her. 

Donna looked at the oddly familiar brush. “Did I put this in…” 

“Yeah, the time I forgot to pack my toothbrush and then you stuck an extra one in my bag the next time, so I would have one if it happened again; it’s that one. I haven’t needed it,” he smirked at her. “It worked out well for you though.” He didn’t tell her that he kept it in the bag for the entire campaign because every time he saw it he thought of her. 

Josh put toothpaste on his toothbrush and then put some on Donna’s. She smiled at the gesture. They brushed their teeth in unison, taking turns spitting into the sink. Donna couldn’t help but thing how domestic the whole thing was. Josh smiled at her when be put down his toothbrush. “I’ll let you finish up in peace,” he stated. 

Donna settled for the hotel face soap and washed her face. When she exited the bathroom, Josh was in bed, sitting up staring in front of him. She assumed he was thinking about Leo. She crossed the room without saying anything and pulled back the covers. Josh turned at looked at her. “Thank you for staying,” he said quietly as he turned out the light. 

“Thanks for asking me to,” she responded scooting down in the bed. As she adjusted her head on the slightly lumpy hotel pillow, Donna felt Josh’s fingers tentatively brush across the skin on her arm. She smiled at the gentleness of it and his apparent nervousness. This was definitely a side of Josh Lyman she hadn’t been aware of before. She was on her side facing away from him and remained that way, but she scooted back so she was closer to him. 

More confidently, he reached out again and this time wrapped his arms around her waist, joining them in from of her stomach. Casually, Donna ran one of her bare feet over one of Josh’s. He sighed in contentment and tightened his grip around her. They drifted off to sleep.


	3. The Morning After

Requiem

The next few days passed in a blur. Before she knew it, Donna found herself walking into the church for Leo’s funeral. She hugged a few people including CJ and sat down near her. Glancing across the aisle, she spotted Josh and offered him a small reassuring smile. He returned it briefly but then looked at the ground. 

Things had been slightly odd between them since the night of the election. The shutting down of the campaign and organizing the move to Washington had exhausted everyone and created a tension between her and Josh. They had slept together the night following the election before Josh had left Texas, but Donna had stayed behind an extra day to help with some campaign issues. She hadn’t talked to him since arriving in DC. 

The funeral was nice and sad, just as Donna expected it to be. Leo had been such a constant in all of their lives. Knowing he was gone created an enormous void. When she got to The White House, she made the rounds to various offices and desks to catch up with people before the formal wake began. Ending with Charlie, she encouraged him to escort her over. 

When she finally talked to Josh, it was odd. The look on his face when she explained that she was staying with CJ was hard to read. He had made a joke about having sex in his apartment, but she had meant it when she implied she wasn’t the only one who could be finding this all difficult to navigate. She knew him to well to know he wasn’t struggling with things. After all, they fell together and still had not discussed anything. 

The time up in the residence had been nice. Familiar faces and friendship, laughter and stories of Leo, it had made everything seem more bearable. She had hugged Josh goodnight during everyone’s goodbyes. It was something that wouldn’t surprise anyone around them and simply been seen as a friendly supportive gesture. She had been tempted to kiss him and it had looked like he had wanted that too, but that would most definitely have raised questions neither of them were prepared to answer. 

She left with CJ, and they rode back to CJ’s apartment in near silence. “Rough few days,” CJ stated as they exited the car and climbed the stairs to the apartment. 

“A rollercoaster,” Donna agreed. CJ unlocked the door and led Donna into the apartment. “Thanks for letting me stay here,” she added. 

“Not a problem,” CJ replied. “Wine? I’m not quite ready to go to sleep.” 

“Wine would be nice,” Donna replied. “I think I might want to slip into something more comfortable first.” 

“I think a glass of wine in our pajamas would be a fitting end to today,” CJ stated. Donna nodded in agreement. CJ showed her to the guest bedroom before disappearing into her own. 

***************************

Josh wandered out of The White House after everyone else. He really didn’t want to talk to anyone. He would have happily talked to Donna, but she was otherwise busy with CJ. He walked the mostly deserted halls and through the bullpen once before leaving, casting a look at his old office. 

He wondered about Donna’s comment about not staying with him. “It’s a step,” she had said. “Some people get uncomfortable. I assumed you would be one of those people.” Josh wondered what that had meant in terms of her opinion of him, or more importantly, her opinion of his view of their relationship. He wanted to talk to her about it, but alas, she was at CJ’s for the night. Judging by her reaction when he suggested she tell CJ she had somewhere else to stay, he assumed he wasn’t welcome to call her. 

As he worked his way toward the exit, he noticed a familiar person leaving the area of the pressroom. “Danny?” he asked. “What are you still doing here?” 

“Reminiscing,” Danny replied. “You?” 

“A few of us were up in the residence,” Josh replied. 

“CJ?” Danny asked sounding a little too hopeful he realized. 

“Yeah,” Josh replied. “She left awhile ago,” he added. Danny nodded. “Donna is staying at CJ’s apartment tonight.” 

“Yeah, I heard,” Danny said. “You doing anything? What to grab a drink?” he asked. 

“Sure,” Josh replied. “I don’t have any plans. You’re not doing anything tonight?” 

“My plans for the evening fell through,” Danny stated as they left the building together and headed toward the Hawk ‘n Dove for a drink.

***********************  
CJ and Donna, both clad in pajama pants and long sleeve t-shirts, sat on CJ’s couch drinking their second glass of wine each. “So how does it feel having won?” CJ asked. “The same as last time.” 

“Sort of,” Donna replied. “Not really. There was less excitement this time around. Not for the win, I mean, just for the campaign in general. Maybe if I had been with the campaign for the primaries it would have been there more, but I remember on the President’s campaign every win, no matter how small, seemed like the biggest deal.” 

CJ nodded and smiled. “I remember.” 

“We danced,” Donna said. “That never happened on this campaign. Well,” she smiled, “The President-Elect and Mrs. Santos did some.” 

“It doesn’t mean the win isn’t as important,” CJ replied. 

“No of course it doesn’t,” Donna agreed. “You’re right. I’m so glad we won, and the next four or eight years will be amazing I’m sure. What about you?” Donna asked. “Have you decided what you are doing after?” 

“It’s still up in the air,” CJ stated. “I am ready to have a life though. I can tell you that.” 

Donna laughed. “And what is that life going to entail?” she asked. CJ started to open her mouth, but then closed it. Donna caught something in her expression. “CJ?” she began. “Are you seeing someone?” 

“You needn’t sound so shocked at the concept,” CJ answered indignantly but with a slight laugh. 

“I’m not,” Donna replied. “Well, I guess I am in a way. The only guy I’ve known you to have any real interest in since we’ve met was Dan…” She trailed off at the look on CJ’s face. “Danny, really?” she said. 

CJ nodded. 

**********

“So the campaign is over,” Danny stated. “You won. How does it feel?” 

“Every question you ask sounds like you’re writing a story,” Josh said with a smirk. “But I’ll tell you anyway. It feels like I just won an Olympic medal… in a sport I’d never competed in before.” 

Danny laughed. “But you have competed in this before. You’re getting a reputation for getting the underdog elected,” he replied. “You’ll be in high demand. Though I assume you’ll be Chief of Staff, so you’ll be preoccupied.” 

“There aren’t any announcements about staffing yet,” Josh replied. 

Danny laughed. “I’m not writing a story Josh,” he said. “I’m saying this as your friend.” 

“As friends, why don’t we talk about something less work related,” Josh suggested. “Why’d you look so depressed at the wake when you sat next to me?” 

“It was a wake for Leo McGarry,” Danny answered. “How should I have looked?” 

Josh smiled. “You didn’t look depressed over that. There was something else.” He paused for a moment. “CJ?” he asked. 

Danny laughed again. “For someone so oblivious, you can be quite observant.” 

“So I’ve been told,” Josh stated. “Wait,” he said. “You’re plans for tonight, the ones that were cancelled, they were with CJ weren’t they. She cancelled because Donna asked to stay with her.” 

“Really observant,” Danny said with surprise. “Especially for as many drinks into the night as we are.” 

“Not really,” Josh said with a tone of admission. “Just someone who can relate.” 

Danny looked at he putting to use the investigative skills. “Donna cancelled on you,” he said. 

“Not so much cancelled and declined my offer,” Josh replied. “We’re kind of pathetic,” he suggested. 

“She didn’t want to have the conversation with CJ?” Danny asked. Josh nodded. “CJ either. Do you think they are ashamed of us?” he wondered. 

“Hmm,” Josh murmured. “Possibly, but you know, that is ridiculous. We are both good guys.” 

“Right,” Danny agreed. “We’re supportive and… understanding.” 

“Though, there was that whole thing about Donna thinking I kept her in her position as my assistant to keep her from moving on with her career.” 

“CJ used to imply that I didn’t respect her position as Press Secretary,” Danny added. “That wasn’t true though.” 

“Neither is the thing with Donna,” Josh stated. “I mean I wanted her to stay my assistant but not because I wanted to hold her back.” 

“Of course not,” Danny agreed. 

*********

“In terms of fairness,” Donna said after having listened to CJ talk about things with Danny, “I should probably admit something.” 

“What’s that?” CJ asked. 

“I’m sleeping with Josh,” she stated quickly, afraid the fear would stop her. 

“What?” CJ exclaimed. “For how long?” 

“Since the night before election day,” Donna said. “Just a couple nights.” 

“Wow,” CJ stated. “I guess I was wrong huh? When I said…” she trailed off. 

“Maybe,” Donna stated. “He has as much as said it isn’t about the sex, but it’s Josh so…” 

“So… what?” CJ asked curiously. 

“He says what women want to hear,” Donna replied. “I’ve watched it. Until he loses it, that is, and then gets into screaming fights.” 

“Donna, you aren’t Amy Gardner,” CJ stated with a laugh. 

Donna nodded. “She was trying to set him up today,” she said. 

“Amy was?” CJ asked. “That’s kind of funny.” 

“He mentioned it to me in front of her. For a minute, I thought he maybe wanted me to step up and claim him, to say he wasn’t available.” Donna bit her lip after finishing. 

“You didn’t?” CJ asked. Donna just shook her head. CJ sighed. “These men are complicated. Danny wanted me to come over tonight,” she admitted. 

“Did you cancel because of me?” Donna asked. When CJ nodded, she added, “Oh, I’m sorry CJ, if I had known…” 

“It’s fine,” CJ responded. “I could have just told you and let you stay here alone. That was what he thought I should do.” 

“You didn’t want to tell me?” Donna asked. 

CJ shook her head. “It wasn’t really about telling you. It was that telling you, or anyone, would make me analyze it. Like I am now,” she explained. 

Donna laughed slightly. “I understand all to well. Josh asked me at the wake if I still had a key to his apartment. He wanted me to stay with him.” She paused for a moment. “He thought I should just tell you I had somewhere else to stay.” 

“So really we could both be getting laid right now,” CJ said with a laugh. 

“I guess so,” Donna replied taking a sip of her wine and trying not to blush. 

Suddenly CJ’s buzzer rang, and they both looked at the door. “You think it is one of them?” CJ asked. 

“Probably,” Donna stated. “Who else would it be at this time of night?” 

“Damn the secret service for leaving once I’m secure at home,” CJ muttered. “Otherwise this awkwardness could be avoided. Plus they’d kill me if they knew I let someone in afterward.” She stood and crossed to the buzzer. 

“Wouldn’t that defeat the purpose of protecting you?” Donna asked following CJ to the door. “Which one do you think it is?” 

CJ shrugged and pushed the buzzer button. “Yes?” she asked. 

Through the speaker they heard. “It’s Danny…” followed shortly by, “…and Josh.” 

“Both of them?” Donna asked. “Well this will make it much less awkward.” 

“Why are they even together?” CJ asked rhetorically. 

“We had a drink after the thing,” Josh said. “You know we can still hear you.” 

“Let us up,” Danny added. 

CJ looked at Donna who nodded reluctantly. “Fine,” CJ responded, pressing the button to allow entry. 

They opened the door for the guys and moved back to the couch and their wine. When Danny and Josh entered the apartment, they looked at the women as if unsure what to do next. 

Donna broke the ice. “I guess we should be glad that there isn’t snow on the ground, or you might have had to throw snowballs again.” 

“That was being charming,” Josh said with a small smile. 

“Most of my neighborhood would disagree with you,” Donna retorted. “What are you guys doing here?” 

Danny and Josh looked back and forth from the women to each other. “You don’t even know,” CJ said with a laugh. 

“Sure we do,” Josh said quickly. “We’re here because…” he trailed off and turned to Danny. 

“Uh, because we think you should both admit what is going on here…” Danny finished awkwardly. 

Donna and CJ laughed in unison. “Well we already did that,” CJ stated. “So you are a little late.” 

“Umm,” Danny looked at Josh. “We might not have thought through this plan thoroughly,” he admitted. 

“How much did you guys have to drink before deciding to come over here?” CJ asked. 

Danny shook his head. “Just a couple drinks.” 

“Perhaps a couple too many,” she replied. 

Josh and Donna had barely spoken; they seemed to just be looking at each other. Finally, Donna said, “CJ, I’m going to go to Josh’s with him. We’ll let you two talk. I just need to change and grab my bag.” 

“Are you sure?” CJ asked. 

“Yeah. Thanks so much for your willingness in letting me stay,” she slipped into the guest room. 

“Sorry,” Josh finally murmured. “I think it was my idea to come here. A bad one I guess.” 

“I suggested it first,” Danny admitted. 

“It’s fine,” CJ replied. “Kind of sweet actually. By the way Josh, some advice from a friend, you guys should probably talk through some things. She might be the best thing that has ever happened to you.” 

“There is no might about it,” Josh replied. “She is.” 

“Am what?” Donna asked exiting the guest room. 

“I’ll tell you at my apartment,” Josh replied. “Thanks CJ, Danny.” 

“Thanks again CJ,” Donna said giving her friend a hug. “Good luck.”

“You too,” CJ replied. 

As Donna and Josh disappeared out the door, she turned to Danny, who had a goofy grin on his face. “Hi,” he said. 

“You’re damn lucky you’re cute,” she replied before kissing him. 

***************************************************************

Josh and Donna didn’t speak on the cab ride to his apartment. As he opened the door, he finally opened his mouth. “Sorry,” he muttered. “I shouldn’t have…” 

“Why did you?” she asked dropping her suitcase by the door. She wasn’t as annoyed as she was convinced she sounded. 

Josh ran his hand through his hair. “I, uh, I… Well Danny and I were talking and…” He sighed. “Were you embarrassed to tell CJ we are, whatever we are?” he asked. 

“What?” she asked. “You were the one who suggested I lie.” She bit her lip. “Besides if we don’t know what we are, it is a little hard to tell other people about it.” 

“Yeah,” Josh agreed. “Well anyway, I guess I just missed you and wanted to see you.” 

Donna felt herself warm at his confession. “Yeah?” she asked. He nodded. “I missed you some too.” 

“Yeah?” he asked. 

“Yeah,” she replied crossing to him. She leaned in and kissed him. He kissed back with passion, pressing her back against the wall. As he moved to her neck, she murmured, “Maybe we should move to the…” His lips were on hers again, cutting her off, but he seemed to get the message because they were moving toward the bedroom.


	4. The Morning After

Transition

Donna had heard Sam was back. He was whom she was in search of when she wandered down the hallway. She planned to do her best to avoid Josh. She had heard he had been snapping at people all day. 

“Hey Donna,” the familiar voice said from behind her. 

She turned around and saw Sam walking down the hall. “Hey Sam,” she said hugging him. “You’re just who I was looking for.” 

“Not Josh?” he asked. 

“Uh no, why?” she replied.

“I’ve heard some things,” he guided her into his office. “Are they true?” 

She sighed and sat in the chair across from his desk. “Depends on what you heard,” she said. 

“Just some whisperings that maybe the two of you have finally…” he trailed off with an investigative look. “So you have?” 

“Have what?” she asked innocently.

“You’re together, dating?” he asked. “Come on Donna, you are both two of my best friends. Besides, I was there for all those years. I know how you feel about each other.” 

“Do you?” Donna asked. “Because sometimes I’m not sure I do.” She sighed. “And dating might be too definite of a word.” She chewed on her bottom lip. She wanted to talk about this with someone, and Sam just might be the right person. He was right that he had been there all along. And Sam had always been like a brother to her. 

“Did Josh do something Donna?” Sam asked. “’Cause I’ve noticed he is on edge and way more so than usual, which is saying something considering it is Josh.” He got up and crossed around his desk sitting on the edge of it, so he was closer to her. 

“He didn’t really do anything,” she began. “It was more. Well night before last I went over to his place and we…” she trailed off. 

Sam nodded, “Yeah.” He might have loved both Josh and Donna but he definitely had no need to hear about their sex life. 

“Anyway, yesterday morning, I told him I thought there was a timeline for us to figure out what we wanted from each other. I thought a month, four weeks.” 

Sam nodded again. “Sure that makes sense,” he said. “I can’t imagine after what 8, 9 years? That you would need that long.” 

“I don’t,” Donna stated. “And I thought it would be more than enough for him, even with the transition and everything, but…” 

“He didn’t say anything?” Sam asked. 

“No, I ran into him today, and he told me with everything he didn’t think he could get a handle on it in that time frame.” Donna sighed and looked at her feet. 

“What did you say?” Sam asked. Internally he was thinking that he wanted to go knock some sense into Josh. 

“I just said that there were three weeks and six days left,” she stated. “Maybe it isn’t meant to be, Sam.” She smiled at him sadly. 

“Oh I don’t know it could just be…” Sam stopped, cut off by screaming across the hallway. 

They both froze. “He’s screaming at Otto,” Donna said. “About his… phone?”

“Man he really has lost it,” Sam replied. “Hold on.” With complete poise, Sam stood and walked out of the office he had adopted. 

Donna watched him cross and watch the exchange. He took the phone from Otto and entered Josh’s office. She heard Josh holler something else at Otto before Sam cut him off. She realized that Sam was just as good at handling Josh as she was. She watched him as he closed the door. Curiosity propelled her out of the seat, and she found herself standing next to Ronna, who gave her a concerned look. 

After a minute or so, Sam exited the office, and Josh moved toward the door with a slightly stunned look on his face. His eyes fell on Donna, and she attempted to offer him a small smile. He returned it until a look of shame fell across his face. “Sam wait,” he called and hurried off after him. 

Sam stopped and turned around. “You’re right,” Josh said. “I’ll go, but um, you’ll stay and cover until I get back?” 

Donna ears perked up. “Back from where?” she wondered, not realizing until after that she had said it aloud. 

Josh turned and looked at her. “Umm,” he said. “Can we talk in a minute?” he asked. “I have something to, uh, ask you.” 

“Sure,” she nodded. “I’ll just be working.” She walked passed them to the desk she had been using. 

Josh and Sam walked together deep in conversation toward the President-Elect’s office. Donna sat down at the desk, but she found it difficult to work. She looked at the list she had started on. Things she would need to do if she accepted the First-Lady’s-in-Waiting’s offer to be her Chief of Staff. Suddenly, Josh was standing next to her. 

“Can we talk?” he asked. “Maybe in my office?”

She nodded. Suddenly fear overwhelmed her. She was worried this would be just a continuation of their conversation from earlier. It had taken all her willpower to remain strong and hold firm to her timeline. She followed him silently. 

He closed the door to the office and turned to her. “Have you accepted Mrs. Santos’ offer?” he asked. 

“Not yet,” she stated. “I think I will, but I’m still not so sure.” 

Josh was nodding. “Do you think she’d be okay with you taking some time off?” he asked. 

“I don’t know… wait what?” she asked. “Why would I take time off?” 

Josh looked at the floor nervously. “To, uh, go on vacation,” he said. He looked up at her hopefully. “With me,” he added. 

“What?” Donna asked. “You’re, uh, vacation?” She was stammering, and she knew it but couldn’t seem to help it. 

“I was thinking maybe Hawai’i,” he said. “You’ve always wanted to go and a week would be enough time to, you know, get there and relax and stuff.” 

Donna felt the smile spread across her face. “You want to take me to Hawai’i?” she asked. 

“Or somewhere else if you’d rather,” he said. “I’m okay with anywhere.” 

“No,” she said quickly. “Hawai’i is perfect.” 

“So, you’ll go?” he asked hopefully. 

“Well, yeah,” she replied. “Of course.” 

“Tonight?” he asked. “I’ll get the tickets, make reservations. You just need to pack.” 

“I’ll get into my apartment and find my summer stuff,” she said. “I need to talk to Mrs. Santos.” 

“I’ll text you the flight info and let you know when I’ll pick you up,” he said. 

Donna nodded. “Okay,” she said leaving his office. 

Helen Santos had been fine with Donna leaving for a week. After, of course, she had accepted the job. Donna had called the woman subletting her apartment to let her know she needed to get some things. After digging through the closet holding her stuff, packed neatly into boxes, she found a few sundresses, some shorts and tank tops, t-shirts, and bikinis. The best things she could find for tropical vacation wear. She wondered that she had so much of it; she’d never had a need for this kind of stuff. It must have been wishful thinking when she bought it. 

Josh sent her a text that he was headed home to pack and could she meet him at his place, so at nearly 6:30 in the evening, she climbed out of a cab at his place. She let herself in and found him in his bedroom staring at his closet, an empty suitcase on the bed. “I don’t have anything to take,” he muttered without even looking at her. 

“Sure you do,” she said. “Here, change first,” she stated. She pulled a pair of his jeans of the shelf in his closet and handed him a light blue striped shirt. 

He smiled at her. “Thanks,” he said. 

She returned the smile and began to dig through his closet. “Look, shorts,” she said pulling out two pair of khaki shorts. “Think they still fit?” she asked. 

“I haven’t changed pant size in like ten years,” he said. “So yeah.” 

“Well, it’s a start,” she replied tossing them into the suitcase and turning back to the closet. “Swim trunks?” she asked. 

“I might need to buy them,” he replied. “Pretty sure I don’t have any.” 

“Alright,” Donna replied her head sit buried in the closet. She emerged with a handful of t-shirts and a couple of polos. “These’ll be good.” She added them to the suitcase. “You should pick out your own boxers,” she said matter-of-factly. 

“Why?” he asked. “You’re on a roll.” She looked up and their eyes locked. After a moment of silence, he said, “You’re packing for me.” 

“Yeah,” she replied. “It isn’t the first time.” 

“Well yeah, but it was your job then,” he said. “Now you’re just doing it…” 

She laughed. “Josh, I hate the break it to you, but I never packed for you because it was my job. Did anyone else’s assistants pack for them?” 

“Well no,” he agreed. “Then why did you…?” 

“Same reason I am now,” she replied. As she walked past him to the bathroom, she kissed his cheek. “Get yourself some boxers packed and anything else you want to wear. I’ll pack your toiletries.” 

Josh froze and watched her disappear into the bathroom, wondering to himself just why it was she was packing for him. Her statement had been loaded, but he was afraid of reading too much into it. 

They got to the airport with just enough time to make it through security and get into the boarding line. “I have to use the bathroom,” Donna stated. “Go ahead and board; I’ll meet you at the seats.” 

Josh nodded and boarded the plane. Donna tried to hurry in the bathroom, but found herself staring in the mirror for a moment trying to calm herself. She had agreed to this vacation so quickly she hadn’t taken a moment to think about the implications. 

Josh had taken his seat just moments before her. When she sat next to him, he turned at looked at her. “Hey,” he said in a whispering tone. She smiled. He had greeted her like he hadn’t seen in her weeks rather than it being just minutes. 

“May I just say, a truly excellent notion,” she said with a smile. 

“Sam’s,” he replied. 

She laughed. “Of course,” she stated with a smile. She found herself wondering if Sam had told Josh about their conversation. 

“The vacation,” Josh added. He smiled, showing his dimples for just the briefest second. “Going with you part was all me.” 

She smiled as she realized he was telling the truth, Sam hadn’t encouraged him to take her despite her conversation with him. With a half smile, she leaned in and kissed him. When they broke apart, Josh smiled at her again. “You look really pretty,” he said. “I meant to say that back at my apartment.” 

Donna felt herself blush slightly. “Thanks,” she replied. “So vacation?” she asked. 

“Seemed like it was time,” he replied. “After… however many years.” 

Donna nodded. She pulled a book from her carryon. “I was going to read during the flight,” she said. “Do you mind?” 

Josh shook his head. “Of course not,” he said. “I should have thought of something like that.” 

Donna laughed at him a bit. “Well that would be out of character,” she said. “Here.” She reached into her bag and grabbed a second book. She handed it to him. 

He looked it over. “Thanks,” he responded. 

After the flight took off, Josh read a few pages. Donna was thoroughly engrossed in her book. At one point, however, she turned and looked at him. She found that he was staring at her. “What?” she asked. 

“Just watching you,” he replied. “Is your book good?” 

“Yes,” she replied. She smiled and kissed him before turning back to her book. 

Josh continued to watch her read until Donna noticed his head droop a little. She turned and looked at him. He had fallen asleep. He looked so relaxed, and she realized that even the nights she had slept with him he hadn’t seemed to calm in his sleep. She ran her hand gently through his hair. Then she turned back to the book. 

After reading three chapters, Donna set the book down in her lap and watched Josh for a moment. Suddenly, she felt incredibly tired as well. She somewhat cautiously, as not to wake him, leaned her head onto Josh’s shoulder. “Mmm” he murmured. Without opening his eyes, he hand sought hers, and he laced their fingers together. 

Josh woke up to the pilot making an announcement about their landing, which was coming quickly he gathered. Donna was stretching next to him. Her head still on his shoulder, her eyes still pressed closed. 

“We’re landing,” he whispered. 

“Yeah,” she agreed. “What time is it here? The pilot said, but I didn’t hear.” 

“I didn’t hear either, but if it is nine in the morning in DC, then it would be…” 

“Three in the morning here,” Donna stated. 

Josh nodded and yawned. “I’m still tired, and I slept a long time. Did you sleep okay?” 

“More than,” she replied. “You make a pretty good pillow. Of course, I discovered that years ago on the first campaign.” Josh grinned at her. “Oh Josh look,” she said pointing out the window. They were landing and the lights from the airport lit up just enough to give a small view of the mountains and ocean. “It’s beautiful,” Donna said. Josh laced his fingers with hers again, and they watched out the window together. 

*********

They got to their resort and checked in while it was still dark. Donna went to stand on the lanai despite it being difficult to see anything. “I can’t wait to see it in the morning,” she whispered. Josh came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. “What made you choose Kauai?” she asked. 

“I looked online, and people said…” Josh stopped slightly embarrassed. He took a deep breath and began again. “People said it was the most romantic of the islands.” 

Donna’s smile was involuntary. She turned around in his arms. “Really?” she asked. 

“Well that was what the web-pages said,” he answered. “I’ve never been to Hawai’i, so I don’t have any hard evidence.” 

Donna leaned in and kissed him. “I mean though, you looked for which island was the most romantic?” she asked. 

“Well yeah,” he replied. “I thought…” He paused and looked at her questioningly. “Was that… okay?” 

“You know Joshua,” Donna said. “You can be very sweet sometimes.” Josh grinned showing off his dimples. “Let’s go to bed,” she said. “We can unpack in the morning.” 

“Sometimes I’m already up at this time,” Josh observed as he removed his jeans and shirt by the bed. 

“Yes,” Donna agreed, “but this is vacation. You are supposed to sleep in; it’s one of the rules.” She had pulled a pair of sleep shorts and a tank top from her suitcase and was changing into them. 

“There are rules for vacation?” Josh asked in disbelief as he crawled into bed. 

“Just three,” Donna said climbing in next to him. She scooted really close to him and ran a hand over his chest. 

“If you keep doing that,” he breathed out, “one of those rules better be about us making love, a lot.” 

Donna’s breath caught in her throat. She and Josh had discussed them “having sex,” but neither of them had used the phrase “making love.” She decided to ignore it for the moment and not risk pointing it out to him incase it scared him to realize he had said it. “Well,” she said running her hand up to his hair. “Rule one is you have to sleep in. Rule two is that you have to relax. And, rule three is…” 

Josh didn’t let her finish. He kissed her passionately and rolled her onto her back. 

*********************************************************************************

“So much for sleeping in,” Josh murmured against Donna’s head as they lay in bed. 

“We’re not up yet,” she replied, her head resting on his chest. “Maybe we could get up and watch the sunrise and come back to bed?” she asked. 

“Whatever you want,” Josh said as she sat up. He pulled the sheet off the bed and followed her onto the Lanai. He wrapped the sheet around both of them as they leaned on the railing and watched the sunrise over the ocean. 

“Wow,” Donna muttered quietly. “It’s beautiful.” 

Josh nodded in agreement. “I’m glad we’re here,” he stated. 

“Me too,” Donna agreed. She leaned back against his chest. 

“Donna?” he began hesitantly as the sunrise normalized. 

“Yeah,” she asked as they moved back into the hotel room. She had pulled back on her sleepwear and Josh was simply in his boxers. 

They sat on the bed and he said, “I’m sorry about in the hallway yesterday… the whole four week timeline.” 

“Three weeks and five days,” Donna said turning to face him more.

“I don’t need it,” Josh said. “I know what I want.” He took a deep breath. “You said we should decide what we wanted from each other. I’m not sure I know what I want from you, other than for you to just be you, but I know for sure what I want to offer you.” He stopped. 

“Josh…” Donna said quietly. 

“I want to be here for you… always, to take care of you, to support you in your career, to go to bed and wake up with you, to…” He swallowed nervously. “To love you.” 

“But yesterday…” she began shocked. 

“I was an idiot,” he muttered. “God, I’m an idiot. I should have told you all this days, or weeks, or hell years ago. I’m just such an idiot.” 

Donna smiled. Josh couldn’t see her because he face was buried in his hands. “Careful there buddy,” she said. “You’re talking about the guy I happen to love.” 

He looked up at her hopefully. “Really?” he asked. 

“Sure,” she replied. “What did you think? That you were alone there?” 

“I wasn’t sure. I mean, I hoped but…” Josh smiled. “I do really love you.” 

“Me too,” she replied leaning in to kiss him.


End file.
